Finding a Place to Belong
by xxDeadInsidexx
Summary: What if Sutton hadn't been murdered and she and Emma had gotten the chance to meet? Join Emma in meeting her long-lost twin sister. Chapter 6 is up. Previously "Meeting You".
1. Facebook Messages

I bit my thumbnail as I read over the Facebook message I had just typed.

_Hello. I know that this must sound completely crazy, but I think we're twins. We look exactly the same and have the same birthday. Please here me out. I'd really like to meet you. -Emma_

I sighed. Who would ever believe something like that? I knew that if someone sent me that message I'd probably freak out.

I hesitantly pressed _send. _

A few minutes later, she messaged me back.

_I think you could be right about us being twins. I was adopted, and I know that I've never taken a picture of myself like that so you can't be messing with me. Is there any way that you could come to Tucson? xoxo, Sutton_

I typed back in a rush.

_I have enough money saved that I could take a Greyhound bus to Tucson. I planned on leaving Vegas anyway. Where should we meet? -Emma_

I anxiously waited for her reply. It only took about 2 minutes.

_We can meet at one of my favorite stores. It's called Clique. It's not too hard to find and if you are lost just call my cell phone. The number is on my page. I can't wait to meet you! xoxo, Sutton_

This had to be the best thing that ever happened to me. My long-lost twin sister wanted to meet me. I was no longer going to be the foster kid, I was going to be someone's family. The thought sent a serge of warmth through me. I was finally going to belong somewhere.

I messaged Sutton back quickly.

_That sounds great! I'll see you there. I'll text you when I get to Tucson. -Emma_

I got out of my seat and went into my shabby little room that my foster mother had stuck me in. It was a lot better than some of the other rooms I'd stayed in in the past. The walls were white and the floor was old stained carpeting. In a way, it made me feel at home. My room was never decorated when I was younger and still living with my mother.

I grabbed my small amount of clothes, and the tampax box with my money in it. I pulled the dresser drawer open and removed my journal, that contained everything from my personal thoughts and headlines to the lists I wrote, and I placed it in the bottom of my duffel bag. My money went in next and the clothes were put on the very top.

I wrote my foster mother a note saying that I was leaving and that I would be okay. I placed it on the kitchen table, then I gathered my things and was out the door.

This was the beginning of my new life.


	2. Finally in Tucson

I looked out the window for most of my long trip to Tucson. I just looked up at the stars and made up the regular stories that I usually do.

The star to the right was Sutton and the Emma star was the star closet to her. Above them were the parent stars, who were watching over them. On the other side of my star was the boyfriend star.

I almost laughed out loud at that one. I've never had any serious relationships and always wanted one. That's how boyfriend star came to be. He was someone I could imagine and think up all of our fights and make-ups.

I shook my head, clearing those thoughts. There was no time for thinking about things as trivial as that. I was about to meet my twin sister for the first time ever. I was so nervous and my stomach wouldn't quit doing flips. I grabbed my phone and typed a quick message to Sutton.

_I'm almost to Tucson. -Emma_

I bit my thumb nail as I waited for her response. My phone dinged and I clicked onto her message.

_As soon as you get off of the bus, there should be a store close by. That would be Clique. There is a large neon sign above the entrance, so you can't miss it. See you soon! xoxo, Sutton_

I sighed and shoved my phone back into my jacket pocket.

The bus came to a stop a few minutes later and I grabbed my stuff and exited the bus. I walked down the street for a few minutes and then I saw the huge Clique sign. I took a deep breath and walked inside.

And there, standing by a rack of semiformal dress, was Sutton. I cleared my throat softly and walked over toward her.

"Sutton?"

She turned. "Oh my god."

Then she did something totally unexpected. She hugged me.

"Hi, Emma! I couldn't wait to meet you! I'm so glad you're here!"

I smiled at her. She was somewhat like me from what I've just seen of her in a few moments. We're both trusting, and excited to meet each other.

"I know this is going to be kind of rushed, but would you like to go home with me and meet my parents?" she said with puppy dog eyes.

I laughed.

She looked at me with a hurt expression.

"I'm sorry I laughed. It just sounded like we were dating and you were asking me to go home to meet your parents that will scare the crap out of me." I said, smiling.

She laughed. "I guess I did kind of sound like a girlfriend trying to get you to meet her parents."

"I'd be glad to meet them, though."

"Okay," she said happily, grabbing my hand and towing me out of the store.

She led me to a shiny new car in front of the shop. She unlocked the doors and ordered me to get in.

I did as I was told and Sutton drove to her house quickly.

We came to a stop in the driveway of a huge house that was mansion-like. I gulped and looked over to Sutton.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

I nodded.

We got out of the car and up to the front door of the house.

Sutton walked in and said "I'm home!"

And soon, her family were meeting us at the entrance.


	3. Meeting the Family

Her mother, well that's who I assumed it was, looked at us with a questioning gaze.

"So this is Emma?" she asked.

Sutton nodded, "Freaky isn't it, mom?"

She nodded and smiled at me.

"How was your trip?" her father asked.

"It was alright. I'm just a bit tired." I admitted.

He nodded understandingly. "Well we won't keep you too long. We just want to get to know you a little."

"I'm Laurel," the youngest of the Mercer family said.

I smiled at her. "I'm Emma."

Her parents then invited me into the kitchen where they had a hot tray of pizza waiting.

"Help yourself." her mother said with a smile.

I smiled back and took a slice of the steaming hot pizza. It was just a cheese pizza, which was just how I liked it.

"So," her father started, "how did you find Sutton?"

"I was on Facebook, and my best friend called and told me that there was a girl named Sutton Mercer listed as a suggested friend, and that I should look at her profile. I was creeped out at first, you know? Like why did I need to look at her profile? But, I did anyway, and I noticed that we were the same age, had the same birthday, and we look exaclty alike. So I messaged her, and well, I'm sure that you know the rest." I explained.

They all nodded their heads.

"So, are you adopted, or living in foster care?" Laurel asked.

"I'm living in foster care, but since I'll be 18 in a month, no one will care enough to track me down."

Sutton gave me a look that said, _You should have told me!_

I shrugged in response to her look, which didn't go unnoticed.

"Twin telepathy?" her mother mused.

"Probably," her father agreed.

Sutton and I looked at them and rolled our eyes.

Heck, maybe we did have twin telepathy.

They laughed and they must have seen how tired I was because they told us to go upstairs and get to bed.

Her father helped me carry my bags to Sutton's room, and then he left, leaving Sutton and I alone.

"Today was great," she said, smiling.

I smiled in agreement.

"So, mom and dad kind of registered you for school. You don't mind, do you?"

I chuckled. "I was going to ask them to enroll me tomorrow anyway."

She laughed. "You and I are going to be polar opposites, sister."

I smiled as she called me sister. I'd always wanted a sister.

I laughed with her, and then I yawned.

"Goodnight, Sutton."

"Goodnight, Emma."


	4. Eventful Morning

My eyes fluttered open as Sutton's alarm went off. I rolled over in her king sized bed and noticed that she was still sound asleep. I ever so gently started bouncing on the bed, causing Sutton to almost fall off.

"Emma!" she groaned, "What the heck are you doing?"

I batted my eyelashes and said, "Oh nothing, sister dearest."

She glared at me and finally got out of bed. I followed her lead, getting up as well. She walked toward her closet and took out a shimmering blue cutoff tee and a cute white miniskirt.

She turned to me. "You know what, Emma?"

"What, Sutton?"

"I think this would look good on you," she said pulling out a black shimmering tee, that looked like her blue one, and a grey miniskirt.

"You'd let me wear your clothes?" I asked, hopeful. My clothes looked like rags in comparison.

She nodded. "Yeah, sure thing, sister. We can go shopping this weekend to get you even more cute clothes. I mean, if you want to, of course."

I beamed at her. "Thank you so much, Sutton!"

She smiled back. "Well, let's get dressed. I call dibs on the bathroom first!" with that, she ran to her bathroom full speed.

"But, Sutton!" I whined, "It's my first day!"

I could hear her evil laughter from where I sat on her bed.

"Too bad!" she yelled.

I rolled my eyes and waited for her to finish up. It only took her about 10 minutes which was quite surprising. So as soon as she opened the door, I bolted in and started to get ready. I only took about 10 minutes which is really awesome because I put makeup and everything on too.

I walked out of the bathroom and Sutton was sitting on her bed, inspecting her nails.

"About time," she joked.

I rolled my eyes at her as she stood up.

"Well, let's go get some breakfast and get to school," she said.

I nodded and followed her down the stairs to the kitchen, where the rest of her family were sitting at the dining table. We took our seats and helped ourselves to some chocolate chips pancakes.

When we finished, Laurel, Sutton, and I went to Sutton's car. Laurel let me sit up front, but the next time I'd have to fight for it she told me. The car ride was short, only about 20 minutes long.

As we reached the school, I took a deep breath. Sutton seemed to notice, because she raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry, I'll show you around. Dad had the school give you the same schedule as me except for French. You're taking Creative Writing instead."

I nodded, excited that I wouldn't be alone all day.

Sutton parked her car and we got out. Laurel tapped my shoulder before we entered the big front doors of the school.

"Good luck, Emma."


	5. Creative Writing

School wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I spent most of my day with Sutton, which I was grateful for. She'd introduced me to her friends, and at first glance they weren't the type of people I'd usually hang out with. But they fully accepted me as a part of their group, so they couldn't be all bad.

By the time I got to Creative Writing, I was feeling as if I'd been here with Sutton all of my life. I had a weird feeling of belonging, which I'd never really experienced.

I took my seat and the teacher already knew who I was. She handed me the agenda for the year, and I saw that today we were writing about an experience that changed our lives. There were so many opportunities to write about, but I chose the most recent one. Finding Sutton, that is.

I took out the laptop that the school provided, and that I had to use for all of my classes, and began typing. I finished quickly and emailed it to the teacher, like I was instructed.

Even though is was the only class I didn't have with Sutton, I still felt like I belonged at this school.

On my way to history class, I bumped into some boy in the middle of the hallway, dropping my purse that held of the makeup Sutton had forced me to take.

"I'm so sorry!" I practically yelled.

He helped me gather my things, and met my eyes. He had dark brown hair, and beautiful brown eyes.

"It's my fault, really. I should have been looking where I was going. Sorry, Sutton."

"Oh, I'm not-"

A teacher came out into the hallway and started to yell at us. "Get to your next class! The late bell is about to ring."

He went off in a different direction, and I went to history. I was thankfully not late. I couldn't help but wonder who that boy was though.


	6. Passing Notes

By the time I got to 8th period, I was exhausted. It was only my first day, yet it felt like I'd been doing this for years. Sutton had told me that she was excited that she got to spend the whole day with me as we sat beside each other in English.

We were talking about cheerleading tryouts, which she wanted me to be at even though I told her I wasn't that good, when he walked in. It was the boy with brown hair and mysterious eyes. His eyes met mine for a second and then he turned to Sutton. He took the seat in front of me, and Sutton decided to talk to him.

"Ethan, what are you doing in this English? I thought you'd be in advanced."

He shrugged his shoulders, "Couldn't fit it in my schedule this year," his eyes turned to me, "What's your name?"

"Emma," I replied timidly. Sutton sent me a look that clearly said _Since when are you shy?_

I shrugged at her, and Ethan raised a brow.

"Twin telepathy?" he asked.

Sutton and I exchanged looks and we both said, "Anything's possible."

His lips turned up into a smile and I couldn't help but smile in return. His smile made him even more handsome, which I really didn't think was possible.

Too soon, the teacher walked in and Ethan, Sutton, and I were forced to pay attention. After a few minutes of Mr. Green's talking, I found a note on my desk.

_You like like him! xoxo, Sutton_

I wrote back in scratchy handwriting.

_No, I don't! -Emma_

And for the rest of class, Sutton was determined that I admit I was at least attracted to him.

_You know you like him! You think he's hot. xoxo, Sutton_

_You have no proof! -Emma_

_You said all that I needed just now! You like him! xoxo, Sutton_

_Sutton, I don't. -Emma_

_Whatever you say, sister. xoxo, Sutton_

I rolled my eyes and the bell rang, for which I was grateful. That is, until Sutton decided to make our discussion vocal.

"You like him!" she practically shouted with a grin on her face.

"Sutton, I do not!" I looked around frantically, and sighed in relief when I realized that Ethan had left the classroom.

"You do, and I know it!"

"You are so dead." I told her, chasing her out of the classroom and to the car.

When we got to the car she looked sternly at me and said, "Now tell me you like him, or you walk home."

"Sutton, I don't even know how to get home."

"Then tell me the truth, Emma! You know you like him. I saw the way you were looking."

I rolled my eyes and sighed, "I think he's good looking, okay? That doesn't mean I like him. I barely even know him!"

She broke out into a huge smile, " I knew you thought he was hot."

"Okay, so let me in the car."

She nodded and unlocked the car. They both got in and Laurel arrived a few moments later.

"So I heard you like Ethan." she said, looking at me.

I sighed. It was going to be a long night.


End file.
